To estimate the full economic impact of outdoor recreation across Mesa County, Colorado, researchers measured the impact of both outdoor recreation-related businesses (such as retail trade and manufacturing) and tourism. In 2019, the GDP impact of outdoor recreation was $484,474,065 or 7.2% of total GDP; the direct job impact was 9,897 jobs or 11% of […]
Colorado
Economic Impact of National Parks
Millions of national park visitors generate economic opportunities for gateway communities, spending money that creates jobs and income. See the trends for every national park service unit.
New research shows where wildfire mitigation can be highly cost effective
The United States is spending billions of dollars on suppressing wildfires that threaten a growing number of homes, but very little on better preparing communities before a wildfire occurs.
Tension as Catalyst: Public Lands and the Rural West
View a presentation given at the Our America’s Rural Opportunity forum about the context of public lands and the rural west.
Building for Wildfire Summit: Understanding How Homes Burn
Video and highlights from an event that brought together diverse community leaders to explore practices for building fire-adapted communities.
Newsletter: September 2019
Our latest newsletter contains research on transit equity analysis for Denver, CO, funding needs for Montana’s outdoors, a custom socioeconomic tool for the US Fish & Wildlife Service, and more. Subscribe to our newsletter.
Denver Transit Equity Analysis
Identify where potential bus rapid transit corridors in the Denver, Colorado Metro Area are most likely to enhance mobility and equity.
Association Between User-Generated Commuting Data and Population-Representative Active Commuting Surveillance Data—Four Cities, 2014-2015
One of the primary concerns about data from GPS tracking apps is that the users tend to be more frequent recreators or commuters and therefore do not accurately represent the actual population. This paper shows that there is a strong correlation between the reported share of people in a neighborhood commuting by active transportation between the American Community Survey (a nationally representative survey) and Strava (a GPS tracking app).
Coal Transition in Montrose County, Colorado
New fiscal and policy assessments help local leaders understand their exposure to declining revenue and policy barriers during a coal transition.
San Luis Valley Wildfire Risk
Explore interactive maps of watersheds, wildfire, and the wildland-urban interface in Colorado’s San Luis Valley.
Wildfire, Watersheds, and the Wildland-Urban Interface in the San Luis Valley
Partners in Colorado’s San Luis Valley are working to better understand the impacts of wildfire to communities, watersheds, and quality of life.
Comparing Trends and Prosperity in Gunnison County
Explore socioeconomic trends in Gunnison County and neighboring Colorado counties.
Measuring Prosperity in Gunnison County, Colorado
This tool explores socioeconomic trends in Gunnison County, Colorado and compares them to neighboring counties and the state of Colorado.
Bicycling and Walking in Colorado: Economic Impact and Household Survey Results
This study found that bicycle tourism draws summertime tourists to Colorado ski areas who would not have come otherwise, many of whom come from out-of-state and generate valuable economic impact. State-wide, residents are most concerned about the safety of cycling and strongly support spending on improvements such as new paved off-street bike paths and linking paths to create a statewide system.
Colorado Lags Other States in Taxing Oil, Incentives Increase Volatility
This report compares how Colorado provides local governments with production tax revenue from unconventional fossil fuel extraction compared to other major energy-producing states.
West Is Best: Protected Lands Promote Colorado Jobs and Higher Incomes
Colorado’s rate of population, employment, and real personal income growth has outpaced the nation and this fact sheet looks at the role of protected public lands in supporting jobs and higher incomes.
Report: Colorado’s Oil and Natural Gas Industry
This graphical analysis reviews the status of Colorado’s oil and gas industry including production, drilling activity, tax policy, its role in Colorado’s economy.
Unconventional Oil and North Dakota Communities: State Fiscal Policy Unprepared for Impacts of Energy Development
This report analyzes the growing infrastructure and services needs of the Bakken boom and meeting the demands of unconventional energy development.
Colorado’s Economy and the Role of Federal Protected Lands
This report summarizes Colorado’s economy and the role of federal protected lands, including how the state has performed, and Colorado’s ability to attract people, investment, and businesses.
County Level Drilling Activity, 2001-2011
This report focuses on county-level details of drilling rig activity for the period 2001 to 2011 in the six Rocky Mountain oil and gas states of Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming.